Kanan Jarrus, The Last Padawan (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
uncertain_dume) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2017-07-24 07:09 am
uncertain_dume) wrote in fandomhigh2017-07-24 07:09 am
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Getting to Know Your Own Backyard Two, Monday, Period 1
"Come on," Hera said, grinning at them, "no time to waste! We're actually taking a portal today."
She continued as they settled in. "We wanted to explore a local comet, but there are over five thousand around the place, so we did a bit of searching through the 'internet' here to find an interesting one. Halley's Comet seems to be the one most people around here are familiar with, so we wanted to head there, but right now it's way out past the solar system and wouldn't have a tail."
"I mean, we could probably make it," Kanan mused, "but then we'd have to pretty much just turn around and come back if we want to get back before class ends, all for a view of a big chunk of ice, and where's the fun in that? So we're going to cheat a bit today."
He was just out and saying it. He had called Portalocity for a portal big enough to fit the Ghost through, to about three decades or so ago. They were so cheating.
"We're heading for Halley's Comet in…" She took a moment to check the local date. "Nineteen eighty-six, when it was closest to Earth." And they would probably freak out anyone with a good enough telescope, but that couldn't be helped, really.
It really felt like cheating. Kanan kind of enjoyed the quiet of hyperspace trips. But hey, if Portalocity had a better way than that, one that let them actually see something interesting in the process, sure.
"So, for anyone who doesn't know," Kanan said as the Ghost headed out of Earth's atmosphere toward the waiting portal, "Halley's is a short-period comet. That means it's a comet that takes less than 200 years to orbit the sun. This one in particular takes somewhere in the neighborhood of 74 to 79 years, also making it the only one in this system that is potentially visible twice within a human's lifetime."
"Its nucleus is only about fifteen kilometers across, but its atmosphere is about 100,000 kilometers, and its tail can get up to one hundred million kilometers" Hera said, "so we'll be in its atmosphere but in no danger of colliding with it."
"Interesting fact about a comet," Kanan offered. "That tail it has doesn't actually stream behind it in its orbit. It's caused by the sun's radiation pressure and solar wind, so that tail is actually constantly pointing away from the sun."
Which always kind of amused him when a comet was heading away from the sun, chasing its own tail. He had a simple sense of humor sometimes.
"It's basically, as one of Earth's scientists has called it, a big, dirty snowball," Hera said, still cheerful. "It's just being thrown really fast and far out. It should be fun to look at and follow, though."
"Expect the windshield to get a little damp," Kanan added. "Most of that tail is water vapor."
Good ol' water. It was nice to see you somewhere else in the solar system. Kanan was starting to figure Earth was just being greedy.
"Okay, here we go!" The portal was up ahead, and Hera checked the Ghost's instruments then carefully piloted through it.
She continued as they settled in. "We wanted to explore a local comet, but there are over five thousand around the place, so we did a bit of searching through the 'internet' here to find an interesting one. Halley's Comet seems to be the one most people around here are familiar with, so we wanted to head there, but right now it's way out past the solar system and wouldn't have a tail."
"I mean, we could probably make it," Kanan mused, "but then we'd have to pretty much just turn around and come back if we want to get back before class ends, all for a view of a big chunk of ice, and where's the fun in that? So we're going to cheat a bit today."
He was just out and saying it. He had called Portalocity for a portal big enough to fit the Ghost through, to about three decades or so ago. They were so cheating.
"We're heading for Halley's Comet in…" She took a moment to check the local date. "Nineteen eighty-six, when it was closest to Earth." And they would probably freak out anyone with a good enough telescope, but that couldn't be helped, really.
It really felt like cheating. Kanan kind of enjoyed the quiet of hyperspace trips. But hey, if Portalocity had a better way than that, one that let them actually see something interesting in the process, sure.
"So, for anyone who doesn't know," Kanan said as the Ghost headed out of Earth's atmosphere toward the waiting portal, "Halley's is a short-period comet. That means it's a comet that takes less than 200 years to orbit the sun. This one in particular takes somewhere in the neighborhood of 74 to 79 years, also making it the only one in this system that is potentially visible twice within a human's lifetime."
"Its nucleus is only about fifteen kilometers across, but its atmosphere is about 100,000 kilometers, and its tail can get up to one hundred million kilometers" Hera said, "so we'll be in its atmosphere but in no danger of colliding with it."
"Interesting fact about a comet," Kanan offered. "That tail it has doesn't actually stream behind it in its orbit. It's caused by the sun's radiation pressure and solar wind, so that tail is actually constantly pointing away from the sun."
Which always kind of amused him when a comet was heading away from the sun, chasing its own tail. He had a simple sense of humor sometimes.
"It's basically, as one of Earth's scientists has called it, a big, dirty snowball," Hera said, still cheerful. "It's just being thrown really fast and far out. It should be fun to look at and follow, though."
"Expect the windshield to get a little damp," Kanan added. "Most of that tail is water vapor."
Good ol' water. It was nice to see you somewhere else in the solar system. Kanan was starting to figure Earth was just being greedy.
"Okay, here we go!" The portal was up ahead, and Hera checked the Ghost's instruments then carefully piloted through it.
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